HOW TO: Calculate Your Daily Calorie Needs
Exactly how much food can you eat each day to maintain your weight? This formula is the start point for many weight loss programs. Once you determine your daily caloric needs, you can begin to lower calories until fat loss occurs. It's hardly an exact science - there is no simple formula that takes into account body composition, ethnicity, the thermic affect of nutrients, body surface area, and all the myriad other factors that come together to create your own unique metabolic rate.
Every calorie calculator is a starting point - no more. If you plan your diet with a more scientific approach (i.e. you count calories) - figuring out your daily maintenance level is a must. Personally I've found that it helped me to learn the amount of food that was "normal" for me. However obsessively counting calories was not something I could do forever.
This calculator uses the Mifflin formula, which currently appears to be one of the most accurate predictive equations for both normal weight and obese individuals. The calculator predicts REE (Resting Energy Expenditure). Exercise levels are then factored in. Fat loss levels are calculated by subtracting 20% of daily calories. There is always a "rock bottom" value factored in - which is 8 calories per pound of body weight.
Most calculators you see on the web use the Harris-Benedict equation. However this equation is rather old (c. 1919), and many argue that with today's body weights and lack of exercise, the formula tends to overestimate calories.
As stated previously - even the very best calculator is a "best guess". A recent study into this very subject concluded: "One has to be careful in choosing, understanding and clinically applying the results from predictive equations, bearing in mind that the original population from which the equation was derived does not always correspond to that currently being evaluated."
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I am 13 years old, I feel so fat when I look in the mirror so I am about to go on a diet, and I can tell this tool will help me. thanks so much! :)
Replysame here, I never really like to see myself in the mirror -_-
ReplyDon't worry Melody :) Just set your sights on a good well rounded diet and get about 35-40 minutes of exercise every other day and you will be just fine. Also, don't let the vain people out there fool you. Being overweight does not mean you are unhealthy! I am currently 39lbs overweight and am the healthiest I have ever been :)
ReplyI am 14 bsadly only 5'1, I know i am short. I weigh about 103pound and i used to be 95pound or around 32kg 3 years ago so now that my weigh got to 103 pounds. I felt really fat because my family all skinny. My sister the same high as me but she is only 92 pounds and 12 years old. Is there anyway for me to able to get nutrients to be taller but able to lose weigh? thanks
ReplyMelody -- At this age you are still growing and your hormones are fluctuating as well. Try to focus on eating healthy foods (lots of veg, not so much ice cream) and getting some exercise and you should do fine. At 12 years old, your sister is at a different stage of her development, so it isn't being fair to yourself to compare your weights.
ReplyI kind of know that because my mom very concern about eating the healthy stuff. I love vege and fruit more than anything. And I don't eat much candy especially chocolate maybe 2 a month but still i weigh the same. I thought i did a lot of exercise. I mean I love to dance so but still i couldnt get skinny
Reply"There's no way someone 5'5 could eat 2000 calories a day and maintain 105 lbs unless they were working out excessively. That's a very low weight for that height."
I'm 27, 5'4 1/2, weigh 105, and excercise 3 x per week at the gym in addition to working on my feet all day 30 hours per week and I walk on the days I don't work out. I eat 2000 calories on days I work out, which I usually do 30 minutes on the bike, and 15-20 on the eliptical. On days I don't go to the gym I eat around 1400-1600. Is that normal? I maintain 105 pounds and I do not want to lose or gain.
Replyunfortenately i tried calculating my calories every day, very very carefull of what i was eating and i realized that im eating more than i usually do, so after 5 days i wegh in and i gained 1.7 kg.
Replyi think the calorie calculator should be differed on regions. i.e. in USA ppl eat more than in Europe....
so this one didnt work for me :(.
i have to eat less. im 64 kg my goal is 56 as i was before quit smoking.(i gained so much that i saw a friend that i havent seen for couple of months and not she asked but directly said "congratulations on ur baby") i'm not pregnant :(.
im currently on a diet with fruits, veggies and soup app. 700 kcal daily. for one week (according to calc 1200) ......
Can you email me your spreadsheet? Thank you :)
ReplyThis is a great tool. However, there is a problem with it. It doesn't figure in a person's natural metabolism. Some people have higher or lower metabolisms naturally. Then there are also people that have disorders where their metabolism will fluctuate radically over short periods of time! I understand that there really is no way to track your calorie requirements with this tool given those circumstances. Just a word to the wise, this counter is accurate, but more so for a person with an average metabolism.
ReplyI have a problem. I am 6'7 235 lbs. I am trying to gain weight but can't I exercise 3x a week trying to get more muscular. I take protein drinks and eat very healthy. My main problem is how the hell can I eat 3500 Calories a day? I eat alot and eating 3500 (healthy) calories seems a bit ridiculous. Any Ideas?
Replyi am 14 years old and i just quit ballet. i am tall and lean but my mom was the same when she was young but now she is bigger. when i did ballet i ate alot and never gained weight but i think its because i was exercising alot. now i dont do ballet and i still eat alot. i dont want to loose weight i just want some tips on how to stay healthy.
Replythis formula goes for the normal people who just eat normal and train normal.
now for people who are obese,anorexic or on a bulk diet ,they should consult a specialist.
Replycuz some may need to increase one kind of food and decrease another.
isn't there metric calculation not feets inches
ReplyI tend to believe the Mifflin formula (that this site uses) over the other formulas because after counting calories for 9 months, I'm pretty aware of how my body reacts, and the Mifflin formula gives me a reasonable 1750 RDI to maintain my current weight, whereas the other formulas tell me I should be consuming anywhere between 1900-2200 calories a day, which I know would cause me to gain weight over time. After working so hard to lose my excess weight, I'm not about to let it creep back on!
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